Resilience and Sustainability Trust FAQs

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The IMF’s mandate is to promote members’ balance of payments stability, as well as foster global financial stability and economic growth.
The Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST) helps low-income and vulnerable middle-income countries build resilience to external shocks and ensure sustainable growth, contributing to their longer-term balance of payments stability.
The RST complements the IMF’s existing lending toolkit by providing longer-term affordable financing to address longer-term structural challenges, including climate change and pandemic preparedness.
The focus of the RST on prospective balance of payments stability is aligned with the Fund’s mandate and existing guidelines on the remit of Fund engagement with the membership, as outlined in the 2012 Integrated Surveillance Decision.

The RST is a loan-based trust administered by the IMF, with a governance and financial structure broadly similar to the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT).
RST resources finance IMF-supported programs under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
RST provides policy support and affordable longer maturity financing with:
- 20-year maturity
- 10½ -year grace period
The RST is amplifying the effect of the US$650 billion general SDR allocation implemented in 2021 by channeling resources from economically stronger members to countries where needs are greatest.
Prior to the approval of the RST, the IMF’s lending instruments included:
- General Resources Account (GRA) accessible to all countries
- Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT) available to low-income countries on concessional terms (currently zero interest rates)
About three-quarters of the IMF’s country membership is eligible for RST financing, including low-income members as well as most middle-income countries and all small developing states.

RST resources are mobilized based on voluntary contributions from IMF members with strong external positions, including those wishing to channel SDRs for the benefit of low-income and more vulnerable middle-income members.
The financial architecture is designed to ensure the safety and liquidity of contributors’ loan and deposit claims on the RST, which will retain their reserve asset character, while minimizing the need for budgetary contributions.

The RST aims to help low-income and vulnerable middle-income countries address longer-term structural challenges that pose macroeconomic risks, including climate change and pandemic preparedness.
Initial country cases focused on climate change and rely on broad principles for collaboration developed with the World Bank for climate change focused RSF arrangements.
Similar principles for collaboration are under development for RSF arrangements focused on pandemic preparedness, with the World Bank and World Health Organization.

The RST is open for business since October 2022.
An important role of the Fund is to help members address balance of payments issues through the provision of financial resources; shoring up prospective balance of payments stability has become even more important as countries navigate multiple, persistent shocks that demand greater resilience and sustainability.
Information on the latest RST funding status can be found from IMF sources.